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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Rehabilitation
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1477285

Enhanced computerized cognitive remediation therapy improved cognitive function, negative symptoms, and GDNF in male long-term inpatients with schizophrenia

Provisionally accepted
Peiyun Zhang Peiyun Zhang 1Lingyun Chen Lingyun Chen 1Qianqian Qin Qianqian Qin 1Chao Liu Chao Liu 1Haijiao Zhu Haijiao Zhu 1Xinyu He Xinyu He 1Kaihong Tang Kaihong Tang 1Qi Yan Qi Yan 1Hongmei Shen Hongmei Shen 2*
  • 1 Nantong Mental Health Center, Nantong, Jiangsu Province, China
  • 2 Nantong University, Nantong, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    ABSTRACT Objective: Negative and cognitive symptoms present significant challenges in patients with schizophrenia, and cognitive remediation is a promising approach to alleviate these symptoms. This study aimed to explore the efficacy of computerized cognitive remediation therapy (CCRT) on psychiatric symptoms, cognitive deficits, and serum levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) in patients with schizophrenia. Materials and Methods: Forty male long-term institutionalized inpatients with schizophrenia were assigned to either a CCRT group (n = 20) or a control group (n = 20). The CCRT intervention consisted of 40 individual 40-min sessions over 8 weeks, conducted five times a week. Psychiatric symptoms, cognition, and serum levels of BDNF and GDNF were assessed at baseline, 4 weeks, and 8 weeks. Results: Compared to the control group, the CCRT group exhibited decreased total Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale and negative subscale scores, as well as increased Montreal Cognitive Assessment and Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status scores. Moreover, improvements in list recall were associated with reduced negative symptoms. Additionally, CCRT ameliorated the decrease in serum GDNF levels in patients with schizophrenia. Conclusion: The effectiveness of CCRT in alleviating negative symptoms was associated with improvements in list recall, and GDNF may play a role in the observed effects of CCRT in patients with schizophrenia.

    Keywords: Schizophrenia, negative symptoms, cognitive impairments, Brain brainderived neurotrophic factor, Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor

    Received: 07 Aug 2024; Accepted: 10 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Zhang, Chen, Qin, Liu, Zhu, He, Tang, Yan and Shen. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Hongmei Shen, Nantong University, Nantong, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.